Dyslexia is a serious learning problem and is broadly defined as not being able to read fluently and with accurate comprehension despite normal intelligence. It seems that as a society we are impaired in a similar way. We have difficulty reading glaringly obvious messages, that our political leaders are sending us, indicating that they don’t care a tinker’s damn for social and economic justice.

It’s also obvious that the Egyptian people have no such learning disability. They amassed by the millions to force President Morsi out when he betrayed the promises for true democracy he made to get elected. Morsi’s government imprisoned dissenters without trial, illegally brought charges against journalists, kowtowed to the IMF by cutting public spending, violated core political and legal principles and did nothing to discourage the growing power of the reactionary Muslim Brotherhood.

We Americans have a similar experience with our lying chief executive, but few people seem to care. In a comparison with the Egyptians in Tahrir Square, who are willing to put their bodies on the line, we fall miserably short.